Why UX Is Important when Building An E-commerce Website

Est. Reading: 6 minutes

When building an eCommerce website, there are several things you need to consider. One of those things is user experience.

User Experience is one of the most important aspects of any website. It’s not just a fancy term used by designers either. In fact, it’s a very real thing that affects your bottom line.

If you don’t pay attention to the details, your site could be a huge turnoff for shoppers. That means they might never visit again, which leads to less revenue for you.

In this blog, we’ll look into why UX is important and how you can incorporate it into your eCommerce site design.

User Experience vs User Interface

When developing an eCommerce website, it’s important to understand what each of these terms means.

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User Experience refers to how users feel when interacting with a product. It includes all the elements from design and aesthetics, to functionality and ease of navigation.

User Interface refers to the actual screens on which a user interacts with a product. It may include multiple pages, dropdowns, buttons, etc.

It’s important to note that both the user interface and user experience affect the overall success of a product. However, user experience is often overlooked and undervalued in favor of user interface.

UX Design Principles

User Experience is one of the best examples of how to do SEO without SEO. If you look at the best eCommerce sites today, you’ll see that they all follow certain principles of good UX design. These principles include clean navigation, clear messaging, and simple layouts.

All of these elements lead to better conversions, whether it’s from visitors who simply browse around or from buyers who actually buy something.

While UX design is important, there are other factors that play into conversion rates. One of those factors is SEO, because if you aren’t ranking well, then no matter what you do, you won’t convert.

So let’s talk about some of the best practices for SEO and conversion rate optimization.

Navigation

Navigation is obviously crucial. People should be able to easily locate products and services, and if they can’t, then you might lose customers.

Usability

Your visitors shouldn’t have to spend time figuring out how to navigate your site. They should be able to do everything quickly without having to think about it.

Accessibility

People with disabilities should be able to access all areas of your site, including text, images, videos, etc. This is especially true if your product or service requires physical interaction. You'll remember from our core web values post how accessibility ends up being part of using best practices and having a well-thought-out plan when building a website.

Load Time

When people come to your site, they expect it to load quickly. If it doesn’t, they’ll leave.

Error Pages

It’s always better to show people a friendly error message than a 404 page. Your customers will appreciate it, and it helps boost your brand image.

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Why should you care about UX?

When it comes to eCommerce sites, user experience is everything. So, let's talk about why it matters.

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First, because users expect good usability. They expect to easily navigate around your site. They expect to find exactly what they’re looking for. And they expect to be able to complete transactions quickly and painlessly.

Second, it impacts conversion rates. If your site isn’t designed properly, then users may leave before completing a purchase. If they do complete a transaction, they may not be satisfied with the product or service.

Third, it makes life easier for your employees. If your employees are having trouble finding the information they need, it will impact productivity and morale.

Fourth, it helps improve customer satisfaction. If customers don't feel comfortable navigating your site, they'll probably be less inclined to come back.

Fifth, it improves your brand image. If your site looks unprofessional, it could damage your company's reputation.

Finally, because it makes your business money. Poorly performing websites typically cost businesses more than they generate in revenue.

What Makes a Good User Interface?

A good UI allows users to find information quickly and easily. If you look at the best sites today, they all have a similar design language. They follow certain principles when creating a good user experience. These include:

  • Keep it Simple
  • Be Consistent
  • Focus On Functionality First
  • Use Clear Visual Hierarchy
  • Allow Users To Navigate Easily
  • Provide Accessibility Options

User interfaces are what users interact with when they visit your site. They’re how you communicate with them and why they should stay on your site rather than bounce off.

A good UI is intuitive and simple. It doesn’t require much explanation or guidance from the user. If it does, then it’s probably too complicated.

It also needs to work across all devices. That means it needs to look good on desktop computers, laptops, tablets, and smartphones.

These are the main points to keep in mind when designing an effective user interface.

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Why UX Matters for eCommerce Websites

User experience is all around us. We see it every day in our lives. From smartphones to tablets, laptops, TVs, cars, and pretty much everything else, we interact with technology on a daily basis.

And yet, despite how ubiquitous it is, user experience is something that many eCommerce sites still fail to focus on.

When optimizing your site for conversions, user experience should always be at the forefront of your mind. The reason why? Because if it isn’t, you could be losing sales before they even happen.

User experience is the reason why we spend so much time on our websites. We know how important it is to get the design perfect, but what if your site doesn’t perform well? What if your site looks beautiful, but no one wants to buy from you?

Websites are meant to help us find products, services, or information. If they aren’t helping us do that, we should look at why.

User experience is vital to the success of any business. Your customers expect a certain level of quality from your site, so if you fall short, you could lose a lot of money.

It’s no secret that a poorly designed website can cost businesses thousands of dollars per month in lost sales. That’s why it’s crucial to invest time into creating a pleasant user experience.

Usability Factors Effect Your Conversion Rate

When it comes to conversion rate optimization, usability factors play a huge role. They affect everything from how users find your product and navigate your site, to whether they purchase or leave.

When users land on your website, do they know where to go? Are the pages clearly labeled? Does everything look organized and intuitive? If so, then you’ve got a good user experience going.

User experience is all about how users feel when interacting with your site. There are many factors that affect usability, from design elements like colors and fonts to functionality like navigation menus. But the biggest factor is whether or not users find what they’re looking for easily and quickly.

To improve conversion rates, you need to focus on improving the user experience.

It doesn’t matter how good your product is if no one buys it. To ensure your customers buy from you, you must make sure your site is easy to navigate, your products are clearly labeled, and your payment options are clear.

Two factors stand out the most when considering what UX factors could be causing your customers strife: your checkout process and clarity regarding payment options. Do you offer Afterpay or another pay later service? Does your checkout process allow for easy buying? These are questions that factor in heavily during a customer's journey around your site.

User experience design is a relatively new concept within the world of web design. It has only been around for less than 20 years. However, it has had a huge impact on the industry.

The importance of user experience design cannot be overstated. Because, without a strong user experience, your site won't convert visitors into buyers or subscribers.

With user experience, you're ensuring that people can find where they need to go and that they can actually complete their purchase without having to search for information.

E-commerce designers face many challenges while designing a successful e-commerce site.

When users feel like they're being forced to navigate a complicated site, they may become frustrated and leave.

One of the things that separate successful businesses from those that fail is their ability to deliver a high-quality customer experience. When you look at what makes these brands successful, you'll notice that they're able to communicate effectively with their users.

This means that they understand the needs of their potential customers and focus on providing solutions that address them.

We hope this brief article has given you some things to ponder and implement on the next refresh of your e-commerce website. If you need professional help, we're just a contact form away from wow'ing your customers with a brand new look of your online store.

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